12-year-old plays his role on the family farm as a calf buyer
Breandán suggested he might buy the calves when his father decided to switch from suckers to calf rearing
There are two types of farmer, in my view.
Those who love the mart and those who hate the mart.
If, like me, you are one who adores the hustle and bustle of a cattle sales ring, there can be no finer place to be.
Young and old gathered together focused on the stock, the prices and the competition.
For the buyer, all you really need is to be good with numbers, keen at stock judging, quick on your feet, and not afraid to go head to head with anyone and everyone.
No surprise, then, that there can be a buzz, when you raise that hand or flick the finger.
Breandán O’Sullivan is 12 years old and, up to this summer, was attending Coachford National School (He starts secondary school in September).
While many boys of his age might have the head stuck in the worlds of Fortnite or Pokémon, Breandán usually has his focus on the marts, the cattle trade and farming.
“I would have always had an interest in farming,” Breandán tells me. “I’d be out on the tractor with my dad feeding cattle, or going out with Grandad picking weeds.
“I’ve always liked the outdoors.”
Over the mid-term spring break of 2018, Breandán embarked on a buying spree that saw him purchase 60 calves over a two-week period.
Purchased on behalf of his father, Jerh, in the marts at Cahir, Macroom and Corrin, it was a big number of cattle for a lad of very few years.
A feat that must surely make him one of the country’s youngest calf buyers.
Jerh O’Sullivan, Breandán’s dad, farms just outside the village of Coachford in mid-Cork.
He is also an auctioneer with Cork Co-Operative Marts.
The O’Sullivan’s have been farming here since 1956 on a farm purchased by Jerh’s late father, Brendan.
Dairy farming up to 2005, then switching to suckler and dry-stock farming.
And when they decided more recently to switch from sucker to calf rearing, Breandán suggested that he might buy the calves.
But before bidding of any kind could begin, they needed to decide on what type of calf they wanted.
“We choose Hereford and Angus, mainly bull calves, but if there was value in a few heifer calves, we’d go with that option also,” Jerh explains.
“I told Breandán to buy a good, square calf. A calf with a bit of quality. Something that we could potentially sell again.”
And as for price, a guide price between €200 and €250 a head was decided on.
“After that, I let him off to his own devices.”
Breandán was also mentored by his uncle, Connie Dineen, a buyer with Cork Co-Operative Marts.
Meanwhile, Jerh himself would be busy selling cattle.
In the end, over two weeks, the 12-year-old with an eye for stock purchased 60 quality calves for an average price of €220 a head.
That adds up to €13,200 of cattle.
I ask Breandán to talk a little about his bidding style.
“It depended on the calf.
“If I wanted the calf, I’d let it be seen that I did, and if I spotted value in a calf, at the last moment, I’d throw in a bid.”
So the young man clearly wasn’t afraid of the process.
Now, with the fun of purchasing over, the real work of rearing the calves began.
The calves were housed in a large, open shed. Two 13-teat milk bar feeders were purchased.
At feeding times, the calves are let out into an open yard.
“We let out 20 calves or so at a time, and we’d mix the feed for the next lot,” Breandán tells me.
The calves get the advantage of fresh air on the nice, bright sunny days. It worked well for the O’Sullivans.
“The calf rearing was really a family affair,” Jerh tells me, “with all the family helping out and taking an interest in the calves.”
On occasions when the weather was less cheerful, the calves would be divided into smaller groups, and fed indoors.
All calves were out of grass when I visited the O’Sullivan farm earlier this week, all enjoying the summer sun, with the hard work and expense of rearing young calves behind them.
The whole experience was a great challenge for Breandán, Jerh tells me.
“Not only did he get the buzz of buying the calves, but he also saw the other side. Seeing the reality of the work.”
Outside of farming and school, Breandán is involved in athletics, with the West Muskerry Athletic Club.
He also plays football and hurling with Aghabullogue.
Last year, the GAA club’s under-12 team had great success, winning the championship and league in both football and hurling, the first time in 20 years for the club to achieve such a feat.
In athletics, Breandán has had success in county, Munster and national events.
“Great practice for running after calves,” Jerh suggests.
And no better young man than Breandán to bring them back, I imagine.
